Rail-joint.



0. B. FE

FILED-FEB. 13, 1911 APPLIOA Patented May 2, 1911.

CLAYTON B. FERGUSON, 0F GLENI-IAZEL, PENNSYLVANIA.

RAIL-JOINT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed February 13, 1911.

Patented May 2, 1911.

Serial No. 608,182.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CLAYTON B. FERGUSON, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Glenhazel, in the county of Elk and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rail-Joints, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawing.

This invention relates to rail joints and the objects of my invention are to provide positive and reliable means in a manner as will be hereinafter set forth whereby the confronting ends of two rails can be connected to prevent vertical and lateral displacement of one rail relatively to the other, and obviate the necessity of using bolts and nuts for connecting splice bars to the sides of the rails.

Further objects of my invention are to provide a fastening means for the confronting ends of the rails which will become more positive the longer the rail joint is used and to accomplish the above results by a mechanical construction that is simple, durable and highly efficient for the purposes for which it is intended.

These and such other objects as may hereinafter appear are attained by the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts as will be hereinafter more specifically described and then claimed.

In describing the invention in detail, reference will be had to the accompanying drawing wherein like numerals of reference denote corresponding parts throughout the several views in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of the rail joint. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the same. Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view of the rail joint. Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a detached key. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a detached splice bar.

The reference numerals 1 denote ties or sleepers supporting the confronting ends of two rails, said rails having the base flanges 2 thereof provided with depending transverse ribs 3 adapted to rest, upon the ties 1 and support said rails. Theribs 3 are provided only at the ends of the rails to support said rails in an elevated position to prevent the keys, to be hereinafter referred to, from contacting with the ground or ballast of road bed. The rails have the web portion 4 thereof provided with transverse rectangular openings 5 and intersecting these openings are vertical tapering keyways 6, said key-ways extending from the treads 7 of the rails through the webs 4|: and the base flanges 8 of the rails. These keyways are adapted to receive tapering keys 9.

Mounted against the sidesof the rails are splice bars 10 having the inner sides thereof provided with staggered longitudinal arranged sockets 11 and 12, the sockets 11 to be in longitudinal alinement and in a plane above the longitudinal alinement sockets 12. These sockets are adapted to register with the openings 5 of the rails. The inner sides of the splice bars are provided with tongues 13 and 14:, the tongues 13 being arranged at the lower edges of the sockets 11 and the tongues 14: at the upper edges of the sockets 12, all of said tongues having vertical rectangular openings 15. The tongues 13 and 14 are adapted to extend into the openings 5 and the openings 15 of the tongues 13 of one splice bar are adapted to register with the openings of the tongues 1 1 of the other splice bar. Theregistering openings 15 of the tongues provide clearance for the keys 9 driven into key-ways 6 to lock the splice bars in engagement with the rails.

From the foregoing it will be observed that I have devised a rail joint that can be easily and quickly installed without the use of skilled labor, and while in the drawing there is illustrated a preferred embodiment of the invention, it is to be understood that the structural elements are susceptible to such changes as fall within the scope of the appending claim.

What I claim is In a rail joint, rails having the webs thereof provided with transverse openings, said rails having vertical tapering key-ways intersecting said transverse openings and extending from the treads of the said rails to the base flanges thereof, splice bars engaging the sides of said rails, said bars having the inner sides thereof provided with staggeredly arranged and longitudinally alining sockets adapted to register with the transverse openings of said rails, staggeredly arranged and longitudinally alining tongues carried by said bars and adapted to extend into the transverse openings of said rails, said tongues having vertical openings formed therein adapted to In testimony whereof I aflix my signature register with the key-Ways of said rails, in the presence of two Witnesses.

taperin keys mounted in said key-Ways, 1 and transverse ribs carried by the base CLAYTON FERGUSON flanges of said rails at the ends thereof and Vitnesses: adapted to support said rails in an elevated -GEO. G. FERGUSON, position, substantially described. W. B. CONNELL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D; C. 

